Who will ride Hurricane Fly?

Ruby will ride Hurricane Fly, Paul had to give up the ride to Ruby in the horses novice season at the Punchestown festival and im sure it will be no different here as Ruby gets 1st choice bar Golden Silver (as far as im aware)

What a very stupid comment from you dwm, how on earth do you think hurricane fly will be a wreck by cheltenham. Nonsense comment, he has plenty of time to be given a rest and then  tuned for cheltenham.

The horse has run three times in six weeks, he will have longer than six weeks to cheltenham. He will be spot on chime the day.

I also believe townend will keep the ride.

IF what a friend runs, i would have sam thomas on him. then ruby i guess would want to stay on kauto with AP on denman, and maybe nick schofield on pride of dulcote (think he rode him at newbury from memory?) if not then probably the3 u sed DWM, unless ruby decides pride of dulcote has the biggest chance and might go with him

scholfield on pod imo. if waf runs then ap might ride denman but if he doesnt then i dont think he will ride anythin with any chance in the gc

While Townend has ridden HF in five of his six G1 wins, Ruby will ride at Cheltenham. I'd prefer to have Ruby on board anyway as he's second to none when it comes to the big race days and Townend still to ride a winner at the festival.

Townend seems to think he is keeping the ride, he was talking about  cheltenham in his interview with rte after his win on sunday.

Can I ask if any of you saw the interview or are you all from England? It was very informative about who will ride. It left me in little doubt.

CVByrne - When I say a wreck, I wasn't talking about the physical condition of the horse; im sure he'll turn up 100% fit and give a good account of himself, I meant wreck as in his mental state, given Mullins has said he's concerned the occasion might upset the horse and wind him up!

Oh, and stop critising people for negative comments against horses you fancy...I seem to remember you getting all worked up last year because people were voicing their opinion that Denman stood a better chance in the Gold Cup than Kauto Star...and look what happened there!!

Paul4 I think I read somewhere Nicholls will keep What A Friend fresh for Aintree! Can't imagine with the recent positive comments surround Kauto that Ruby will abondon him!

fair enough DWM, just thought running in the AON would prep him nicely for gold cup. guess could just do job for aintree instead

I've certainly not read anything confirming either way; I just remember seeing Aintree was the preference! I mean I spose he might run in the Gold Cup and if he doesn't get into the race then not be given too hard a time and still remain relatively fresh? Not sure.

I saw the interview and i can't recall him saying he had the ride for Cheltenham. Ruby will surely have the option to ride but i would like to see Paul keep it, don't think he will though

he certainly said in stable tour that would be going gold cup route dwm. also read somewhere that michel le bon would "be taking the same route as what a friend last season in going for totesport bowl at aintree with a view to go for the gold cup the year after", so assumed that meant what a friend would be this year. saying that he ran well at aintree and they do have a fair few gold cup candidates so could just go to aintree with him

Yeah that's what I mean, if he's got three serious chances in the Gold Cup then why add a fourth when he can scoop another Grade 1 come April with a fresh horse! Racing is business after all and if he's going three handed into the Gold Cup id of thought he'd what to go double handed to the Bowl? Not sure, a lot depends on his AON run I guess; let's not forget the horse has it to prove in that race having been so dissapointing in the Betfair Chase at Haydock!

yeh, again from my biased outlook :) but nicholls said at start of season that what a friend wasnt as far forward as the rest due to  the wind op, and they didnt have a set target early on and decided to run in betfair as already had 3/4 in hennessy. i think (and hope) it should come on plenty for that run and if the op has worked (ruby said couldnt breathe after a race last year) then could be a different horse. i have said before i dont back anything short on here, only use it to get big prices for horses i think have a reason for which they may come in alot, so obviously when bet them they will have flaws etc otherwise would be shorter. im hoping he goes gold cup, but have pride of dulcote at a big price aswel so should get at least 1 run for my money

dwm I was fair to criticise your comments "i think it's safe to say hurricane fly will be a complete wreck  come the start of the champion hurdle" because they are stupid, they aren't pertaining to be opinion, you infer this  as common well held knowledge when it is as far from it as could be possible.

I respect others opinions but I'll deride nonsense comments.

Fair point, but I know you think the horse will win the race (read in another topic), and so you're thinking it's safe to say he'll be ok come the day...you think he will, I think he won't! There's no difference in assuming a positive and assuming a negative; you just won't accept anyone's right to assume a negative about a horse you think will win!

What you still doing here anyway? I thought "all the best people had gone to ****!"

****!

Why won't Betfair let me post the name of their rivals!? Pathetic lads, come on!!

Why do you think he will be a wreck at the start? Is this just down to him being a Montjeu?
Has he ever shown a tendancy to get upset pre race or at the start before?

I know Cheltenham is a different proposition to everywhere else and he will have not encountered crowds and noise like this before but im curious why you feel he won't handle this, as he has handled everything asked of him to date.

As I've state elsewhere I think binocular will win the race actually, but I think  hurricane fly has a great chance too. I dont mind others having a  different opinion, especially if they back their opinion up with a good reason and some evidence.

I don't tolerate nonsense statements, like the one below.

Had you said you think ruby will ride because the horse might be wound up by the cheltenham atmosphere and a  mental wreck, and ruby would get him to  settle better I'd  have no qualms with that opinion.

Well I think the fact he's by Montjeu doesn't help; Hurricane Run, Authorized, Papal Bull and Fame & Glory have all been known to get up on their toes when it comes to a big occasion!

I think another big factor is the age of the horse. At 4 or 5 horses are still young enough to be adaptable to change; a lot of things are new to them, some they take in their stride, others upset them. Now at 6 or 7 a horse begins to develop an understanding of it's environment and as such to move him from his comfort zone if you like, into a completly new atmosphere is asking a lot if he's to accept it straight away. My girlfiend through her education (a degree in equine science), and her current job works closely with horses day in day out, and she explained this theory to me, and ive seen it with my own eyes, it's remarkable! While the younger horses are curious enough to embrace change, the more mature horses get upset and have the confidence if you like to challenge it!

What also makes me think this, is that Willie Mullins expressed a concern that the horse might not like the atmosphere of the festival, and for a trainer to admit this says to me that the concern is genuine!

I might be wrong, but im convinced in my mind this will be the case, that he'll be unsettled, throw a strop, and not be the same horse we see cantering around familiar surroundings. In Ireland, as a 5-year-old, he ran at Fairyhouse, Leopardstown and Punchestown; since then, he's run at Fairyhouse, Leopardstown and Punchestown! In my opinion, Willie Mullins should of brought him over to England, if not to run at Cheltenham, then at least to get the horse experience of long travel and different surroundings, now he's matured! He hasn't done so, and I can only assume again that's because he's concerned the horse won't like it, and any Champion Hurdle bid would be questioned! He's really gambling on this one, and in a race so hot as this years Champion Hurdle, he'll need to be spot on come the day, and any sign of him getting worked up will be a massive blow to his chances!

interesting post dwm, obviously considered the "never been to cheltenham" and effects of travelling etc, but never considered the difference between young horses being open to the changes and more mature ones set in  the way

hahaha dwn you really are a first class muppet,i have never read so much crap in all my life the only thing i have ever read from you that makes any sense is in the above post where you say and i quote 'I MIGHT BE WRONG' Hurricane is going to make you look such a fool come march,please please please be my bookmaker

somebody change his nappy ffs

^

Townend.

I think Townend should ride the horse, given the events of the season to date. I have seen the Fly in the flesh twice, the day he accelerated away from Go Native after the last at Leop shocked me it was so impressive, and also last season the day he beat Solwhit in a photo at Punchestown (Rabobank Champ Hdle, again very impressive.
He is obviously a very smart hurdler, but I would tend to agree with DWM that the cauldron of Prestbury Park will be a completely different day, against some very decent hurdlers. Everything will need to go right tactically on the day to win, and it is a hugh ask, but perhaps he is up to it. I have had no bet on the race, and would prefer at this stage to enjoy what promises to be the best Champ Hdle for many years. Ground will play a factor, but just hope the main protagonists stay sound so we can see who is the true champion at this stage.

would hope townend keeps the ride as imo is far better to have the man onboard who knows the horse inside out than the one who knows the course inside out,sure ruby will if not taking the ride give paul as much advice about the unique course as possible to aid him on his first festival ride....just hope if the fly doesnt win people dont crab him as he is still a young jock and one who i think could go right to the top over the next few years...real baptism of fire though and i dont envy him carrying the hopes of ireland on the biggest stage in nh racing on his first visit.

[:D]

It's true gents, HF is a wreck

By the way, with regard to HF having never travelled abroad - He won in France after winning at Punchestown three years ago with Ruby up. And I think people are just looking for reasons to put down the horse by saying he'll ruin his chances on the way down and at the start come Cheltenham. He's never had any problems like that before so why should he now? Won In The dark didn't have any issues before he finished third in the Triumph three years ago. And he also won in front of a packed crowd at Punchestown last April too if anybody has any worries about factor

I agree ^
There is nothing I am aware of in the horses past to suggest the occasion will get to him. Mullins brings loads of horses to the festival each year and his strike rate is second to none; the horses seem to compete at their best almost always (in stark contrast to certain other Irish trainers!)

I dont think HF will win the Champion hurdle but it wont be the occasion that beats him imo.

TheFormMan - I would LOVE to be your bookmaker, because you see, unlike your name suggests, you pay no attention to form, and you pay no attention to race conditions, or anything really...you're clearly a toothless simpleton!

From what I can work out (from your previous posts) your two main fancies for the festival are Zaidpour (in a race he won't run in!!!!!) and Hurricane Fly...anyone else see the trend here!? Both are trained by Willie Mullins, and both are Irish horses!!

What ammuses me is you have no arguement what so ever to back up what you say...you just say it! Agree or not, I have given you a detailed arguement as to why I don't think Hurricane Fly will run his race before the start at the festival; now what id like you to do is give me as detailed an arguement as to why he will please?

Z

DWM, your reasons behind HF not winning the Champion Hurdle are definately unfounded. Four seven-year-olds have won the race in the past 11 runnings and just because he's by Montjeu doesn't mean that he'll boil over before the race. Never has this happened with him before so if you're going to put a case forward, you need the ammo to back it up!

I'm a hurricane fly backer and neither the occasion nor the breeding are  even slight worries for me.

Firstly the horse this season has become very professional and seems to relax and settle very well. Also Mullins uses  ear plugs on many of his horses from a young  age to great effect, they are used to them having worn them all the time. This helps remove one element from the  equation.

Secondly breeding,, only half the genes of the sire are in the horse. The record of montjue's is poor because all the horses who turned up were poor, they had trouble winning at most tracks.

My worries are not about hurricane fly, I've no serious doubts about anything  relating to the horse. My worries are the opposition, that they might be better horses.

ChildOfMine2 - Read what ive written before you comment son; im not saying 7 year olds can't win the race, im saying at 7 years old horses are less likely to embrace change than a 4 or 5 year old horse!!

...and you haven't got the ammo to back up what you say, because the horse has never raced outside of Ireland before!!

He has raced outside ireland before. Get your facts  straight.

Yes he raced in France as a 4-year-old, but if you read(if you CAN read) what I posted,im talking about the horse as a 6 or 7-year-old, when horses begin to mature!

CV...even Hurricane Fly's own trainer has expressed worries about the horse's potential temparement at Cheltenham so give dwm a little credit here. He's by Montjeu also whose record at Cheltenham is 0 winners from 31 thus far...and they are well known to be quirky.

He'll have to be good to beat Binocular and Peddlers Cross.

You didn't say that in your below post, I was just correcting you on that.

Also it's rather encouraging that these are the best  augments you can come up with against the horse. Very flimsy and points that don't worry me in the slightest.

You need discussion to highlight potential  things you miss and nothing as yet has come up that worries me much at all.

I still  only worry about the  talent of the opposition. I'm confident Hurricane Fly will run up to his best on the day, if that's not good enough so very it.

I'm on Binocular, Peddlers Cross and Hurricane Fly at nice prices but that's the order of their chances in my opinion.

Aside from the possible temparement isues, Hurricane Fly has no Cheltenham experience and has been beating the same nag all season, in a country where there are no top 2m hurdlers. It is a proven major trend in the last 20 years that a Champion Hurdler has Cheltenham experience.

CV - I have other reservations against the horse; I don't think he'll find anything off the bridle, and like Ballydoyle I think his form is nothing to shout about, but that's just my opinion! I'm not trying to push my opinion on to anyone, I was merely stating why I have concerns about horse being able to handle the atmosphere of a festival!
Everyone has their own opinion on this, but no obvious way of backing it up, because the truth is, having never run at the festival before, no one knows how he'll react to it, and while people can guess that he'll be ok, I have it good authority from someone who knows more about the nature of horses than any of us that there is a good chance he won't!
If people want to take anything from that, they should be allowed too, but in all honesty I find it a touch offensive that the point I made is being argued against by people like yourself, who although obviously a horse racing fan, know very little I suspect about the nature of horses and their behavioral patters!
When you have a first class degree in equine science, and have worked with horses day in day out for three years, you are then qualified to argue against this theory.

Cheltenham experience isn't that important, especially when it comes to Willie's runners. All ofhis six Cheltenham bumper winners had never run at Cheltenham before they won. Quevega had never run before she won her first Mares Hurdle, Mikael never ran at Cheltenham before he won his Neptune Investments' Hurdle, Rule Supreme had never run at Cheltenham before he won his RSA Chase etc.
So all of the points you have put up are invaled. Seven-year-olds not having the 'right attitude' to win the CH = crap. The fact that HF hasn't run outside of Ireland for the past two years = absolute garbage. And the fact he hasn't run at Cheltenham before = Just like at least half of the winners at each festival year in-year out.
I've no problem with somebody knocking a horse's chances  legitimately but these reasons are definitely unfounded.

You've still not understood my point. Nevermind.

I'm not talking about 7-year-olds not having the right attitude to win the Champion Hurdle, I am talking about horses aged 6 or 7 not having the same capabilities to adapt to change as those aged 4 or 5.

If you're not going to read what ive written properly, then stop wasting everyone's time in replying to it!

What do you mean adapt to change? Running at Cheltenham for the first time when he's seven? If anything, I would have thought that's an advantage as he now has plenty of experience, both mentally & physically, heading to Cheltenham for the first time.

How old was Quevega!? 5.
How old was Mikael D'Haguenet!? 5.
Rule Supreme was 8 but i'll think you'll find he ran over here at Kempton before hand, and finished 3rd.

That's a fair point Childomine - add Cooldine to that list also I believe.

Cooldine ran in the Bumper behind Cork All Star.

Oh I respect your opinion. Everyone has opinions, but discussion throws up things one has overlooked. It's up to  everyone to rate how much those opinions of others matter.

For example, I've a masters degree in statistics so I always look to trends and see if they apply to the official or not.

For example it's not  surprising that most champion hurdle winners gave raced at  the festival before. It is because if you have a horse who's that talented 99% of the time he'll have gone to the festival rather than skipping it.

So I'd say talent is the main factor here and talent is highly correlated to appearing at the cheltenham festival and running well.

It's this reason why I am not worried by this stat in relation to hurricane fly. He was unfortunate not to make the previous two years, his not featuring there is not due to lack of talent.

excuse the predictive text mistakes below.

official = horse

yeh he may not off raced but would he even have won the races he was going for, bumper, supreme, if he had ran at chelt i think he would be a bigger price by not winning his races

Interesting stuff, dwm. Good read.

denman what are you talking about? Hurricane Fly? Bumper?

He's french so was racing on the flat before coming to mullins. He annihilated the supreme winner and last years champion hurdle fav go native twice in his novice season. So he would have likely won the supreme given his level of superiority over the actual winner.

here is your detailed arguement 'CLASS CLASS CLASS' that is why he may win,simple as,anyway unlike you dwn i just cant be bothered putting in the effort to write page after page of thoughts on here (have a life you see) i will just post my selections and let them do the talking as to how well i know this game,you are right in assuming that Zaidpour is my nap for cheltenham and i can 100% tell you that he will be running in the supreme in which he does not have one serious rival in the race and i am including cue card in that who will never in his life win a championship grade 1 race over hurdles at 2 miles,it is laughable to me that 90% of so called racing people can read a horse and one piece of form so wrong,he needs a trip and you will learn this come march,i have also backed hurricane like you say,but by no means think he is a certainty as i am terrified of binocular who i have also backed and again i can promise you that this is a 2 horse race between the 2 of the and the others have nothing like there ability,they will finish 1-2 in the champion hurdle 'FACT' and by the way ruby will be riding him along with zaidpour if he wants,he is the number one jockey for both mullins and nicholls yards and gets first choice of all there horses in every race,if both trainers have a strong fancy in the same race then ruby simply picks the horse he thinks the best chance of winning,he is not tied down to one stable rather than the other,it is 50/50 and both trainers accept that.
SUPREME NOVICE HURDLE-ZAIDPOUR
ARKLE CHASE-GHIZAO
CHAMPION HURDLE-HURRICANE FLY/BINOCULAR
NEPTUNE HURDEL-MINELLA CLASS
RSA-TIME FOR RUPERT/MIKAEL D'HAGUENET
CHAMPION CHASE-BIG ZEB
MARES HURDLE-QUEVEGA
GOLD CUP-IMPERIAL COMMANDER
write them down dwn,watch them win and then come back and show me some respect come march when its all over

lastly i will finish with the sort of thing that i would expect you to post

dwn767
'spoke to paul nicholls this week,told me that big bucks ate 3.6 grams of grass on wednesday,checked my record books and no horse who has ever eaten 3.6 grams of grass on the 26th of the month before the festival has ever won the world hurdle' lay lay lay

A lot of sense there FormMan.

I agree about Ruby but my selections are:

Supreme: Zaidpour
Arkle : Mikael D'Hagenet (ground will be at its softest because they will ensure it isn't too dry on the first day)
C Hurdle: Dunguib. Savers on HF and Binocular
Neptune: Cue Card
Ryanair : Somersby
Ch Chase : Master Minded
Mares : Quevega
Gold Cup : Denman ( I think Sam Thomas will repeat his tactics when he won before and string them out like washing with over a cicuit to go. IC, LR and KS won't stay and the others aren't good enough).

TheFormMan, would you care to tell me how you found Ghizao, Imperial Commander, Time For Rupert, Mikael D'Haguenet, Binocular, Big Zeb and Quevega? What form entitles them to win?

Cheers.

It's an easy game formman, you seem to know a lot more than the rest of us, bookies included.

Absolutely brilliant comment lolololol

dwn767
'spoke to paul nicholls this week,told me that big bucks ate 3.6 grams of grass on wednesday,checked my record books and no horse who has ever eaten 3.6 grams of grass on the 26th of the month before the festival has ever won the world hurdle'  lay lay lay

Moving on.... Unfortunately for dwn, i too am a massive hurricane fly fan. I think the form from last years CH is questionable? Also HF absolutely, beyond all doubt smashed Go Native TWICE as a novice. Go Native has also beaten Binocular twice, but people fail to mention this? This form, as well as beating the 6x G1 winning hurdler Solwhit is why i think he is the best horse in the race and i think he will win. I always take trainers/jockeys interviews with a pinch of salt anyway. Mainly because they are all different and some are very negative and some more positive. Imo, from the interviews i've watched over recent years, Mullins always comes across quite negative/respectful about his horses chances in big races. So maybe this is a reason for him questioning how HF will handle Cheltenham?

1. He's won 8/9 starts over hurdles in IRE - the only hurdles race he's lost was when he wasn't race fit and finished 3rd to Solwhit on his seasonal return - who he has subsequently put in his place.
2. He will clearly get up the Hill - Having won over 2m4f at Fairyhouse in Soft ground
3. He finds plenty off the bridle having been pushed out in nearly all of his races and clearly he has then accelerated away from rivals numerous times.
4. He will be even better on good ground!!!
5. Previous Cheltenham form - not worried because he clearly has the class to win at Cheltenham and most of this stat is about having the class/talent

6. ? No-one knows for sure, how he will handle the occasion. But he's never been a problem before, so how can i suddenly make this assumption? This myth is purely based on the fact he is a Montjeu and his trainers comments.

Dwn - If you have a First Class Degree in Equine Science then i am sure you will agree that all horses are indeed individuals, much like humans? And that even though they will each undoubtedly inherit certain tendencies. Whilst most Montjeu's are very head strong - not all are and i have seen no evidence to think this of HF? Horses are in fact each individuals, are they not??? Just a though, i put it to you sir?

P.S. All other runners beware - There's a Hurricane coming through!!!

dwm, I may have a differing opinion but please ignore pointless useless antagonistic posters like theforeman.

Yeah we're definitely going off the topic here. The only thing I reckon HF will have going against him come Cheltenham is the fact that it looks one of the best renewals in quite some time. I still think he'll win though and given his form on the Flat, albeit mostly on soft ground, I actually think he'll be lengths better on good ground and his turn of foot will be seen to much better effect!

I'd have a lot more question marks over any of his rivals than I would over Hurricane Fly,(Binocular included). Ruby aboard on the big day is a major plus

The formman

well wicketd,regarding your smart mouth comment,yes it does look that Ghizao,Imperial Commander, Time For Rupert, Mikael D'Haguenet, Binocular, Big Zeb and Quevega have now all got very strong and obvious form claims,but the key word there was 'now' and whilst you were sitting around waiting for these horses to prove themselves and there prices to collapse i was already on,thats what classy antipost punters can do you see,i have serious bets on zaidpour at 22/1 for the supreme,backed him again at 16's 14's and 10's and i have even put further bets on at the current price of 8's which is still huge!!! i am on Minella class at 26/1 for the neptune and again have continued to back at the current 12's,i am on Ghizao at 33/1 for the arkle,Time for rupert at 14/1 for the RSA and Mikael D'Haguenet at 28/1 also for the RSA,i'm on Hurricane at 12/1 many times over and Binocular at 9/1 so taking into account the prices that i'm on at and looking at the current prices 'inchcailoch' it would seem that i do as you say 'know more than the bookies' add to that i'm in my 20's set up for life (all due to sports betting) then i would say-yes it is an easy game for anybody who does not have a problem/addiction with gambiling.today was a perfect example of just how easy it is 1;45 at GP MOURAD was an unbelievealbe price 10/11 this morning and there was no way in the world that he could ever be beaten barring a fall,even idiots could have read that form,anybody could have put whatever money they wanted on him and almost doubled there money just like that.
as for you dwn,you asked me to come back with a detailed argument for Hurricane,well i dont have to now as wanna-be-pro has just done it for you,word perfect and 100% on the money,i agree with every word

lololololol.

Mourad wasn't available anywhere at 10/11 genius. 8/11 was the best price which I took a chunk of last night with PP. you even say he was 10/11 this morning! drift did he?

All you've done is listed a lot of obvious favourites and told us you're on at smart prices. You're an utter genius.

You got Binocular at 9/1 for this year's CH did you?

In your 20's, set up through sports betting yet you only joined betfair in December.

You've gotta laugh.

This clown is 2nd only to Mayweather.

I have Binocular backed heavily at 9/1 for the Champion Hurdle too, problem is that was in a dream

When telling lies try make them believable.

I have been backing Bino (and following his price) since he won last years race. He has been 3's since march, drifted to 5's after the fighting fifth, contracted to current price after the delayed xmas hurdle.
Was NEVER 9's for this years race ever!

I too think that Hurricane and Binocular are the two to beat and will most likely dutch them backing Hurricane on the day and Binocular as soon as there is NRNB as he'll surely shorten,though I did think there was great mileage in the 4 places stan james were offering, not sure if they still are, at around 3's Bino looks a cracking each way bet to me. Slight worry about HF is that he jumps slightly to his right which could cause a few problems in a big field

neill he only jumps to his right when he's on his own, he's straight and slick when there is a horse beside him so it will not be a problem in the champion hurdle.

good to know I'd only really noticed it the last day tbh, he should handle the track well as he's a real handy type but all quality as Ted Walsh said, I wonder at all do they regret gelding him as he ran a few times over hurdles before he got cut, though he was hard to settle. Might have been a fine sire of hurdlers

Theformman

Yep he was gelded the summer after his novice hurdle season. He lost his only race after that. But then settled realt well in his last four runs. He's very professional now

Think we are going to see a lot of Montjeu stock going hurdling in the next few seasons

actually genius i think you will find that as you say only pp and B 365 were giving prices last night,both opened up 8/11 but w illiam h ills opened him up at 10/11 this morning,held for about 30 minutes,do your homework kid and as for binocular genius,i got that 9/1 last year straight after he was declared a non runner for last years race,was willing to write off that season and start a freah with him the following year,its called anti post boys,you should start planning ahead,might even win something for a change,the bet is worthless anyway as Hurricane is going to bolt up!as for 'only joined betfair in December' what difference does that make? there were such a thing as bookies before betfair you know,still are believe it or not i can tell you to this day i have still never placed a bet on betfair,only joined up as most firms wont let me get much on anymore and limit me to low stakes.

I'm sure after to comprehensive defeats and an average win against dee ee williams you thought **** it, he'll come good again next year and went in big.

William Hills opened at 4/7 with Mourad.

Stop it you utter laughing stock.

two*

has a life but is on bf forum on a friday night although in his 20's and extremely well off spouting a fantasy book that puts j.r.tolken's efforts to shame lmfbo

Form man you should go and have a word with yourself.

'2 comprehensive defeats and an average win against dee ee williams' you see this is where we are going to disagree again,i suppose like most people you think that binocular for 3 runs last season had lost himself along the way somewhere and he was not the horse of old or indeed present? when in fact there was nothing at all wrong with those 3 runs,i would advise you to go back and watch those replays again,just like i did a few weeks ago before i napped him all over this forum at 11/4 for the christmas hurdle using words like certainty and unbeatable,everybody knows that he needs alot of work to get fit and right and that was the case in last years fighting fifth,he was way undercooked and massively needed the run that day and that was the reason for such a poor showing,as for his next race,that was a great run in last years christmas hurdle,may only have been 90% but was tanking round and jumping brilliantly until hitting the ground very hard at the 3rd last,a mistake that completley knocked the stuffing out of him and cost him any chance of winning,yet still stayed on to finish a length 3rd to go native with AP taking it easy on him once the race was lost and as for the sandown race,well we must have been watching different races because that was anything but an average run,it was soft ground and he went round easy as he liked never coming out of first gear and never off the bridle to win with any amount in hand,yes the form book says he beat dee ee williams by 1 length but it would have been 40 if he had wanted,i promise you if you go back and watch those replays you will see it exactly as i have described and i never said 'i went in big as you state,i simply said that i backed him

After below-par displays in the WBX.com Fighting Fifth Hurdle and the William Hill-sponsored Christmas Hurdle, Binocular posted his first success of the season when winning a three-runner hurdle at Sandown 11 days ago.

However, that victory failed to impress regular rider Tony McCoy, who was questioning whether Binocular was replicating his form from last season.

Henderson added: "AP [Tony McCoy] has not been getting quite the same electric feel off the horse and, as we all know, the one thing this fellow can do is jump.

"All being well, we will identify the full nature of the problem and he will be back to win the Champion Hurdle next year."

RP 17th Feb.

You obviously saw something most of us didn't, Form Man.

However, that victory failed to impress regular rider Tony McCoy, who was (''questioning'') whether Binocular was replicating his form from last season.

he 'questioned' it brigust,he did not say he was 'definatly not' replicating his form from last season,anybody can tell you that binocular is the apple of AP AND HENDERSON'S eye so of course they are going to back up the horse both knowing at the time of that quote he was to be put away for the season,besides that,writing quotes is not going to change my opinion,the only opinion you should listen to in this game is your own and as for quotes,im sure if you go back to nov last year before this seasons fighting fifth you will find very confident quotes coming from both AP AND HENDERSON,saying that 'Binocular was electric schooling over hurdles prior to the race and that gaging on the ear to ear smile on AP's face it would seem that binocular is right back to his best and we expect him to win'
but as we now know brigust,he was not as fit as they first thought and finished a well beaten 3rd
i say again,watch the replays,it is as clear as day,specially the 2nd and 3rd runs of last season

CHAMPION Hurdle hope Binocular has been ruled out for the season due to a muscular problem.

Sent off the 6-4 favourite when third in last year's race, the Nicky Henderson-trained six-year-old was as short as 6-1 in the market for next month's Smurfit Kappa-sponsored opening day highlight.

Henderson said on Wednesday: "We have taken a lot of advice this week, short of consulting a psychiatrist, and it appears he has a muscular problem behind.

"We have come up with something which is obviously significant and, while he is sound, one thing we will not do is continue with him until next season."

After below-par displays in the WBX.com Fighting Fifth Hurdle and the William Hill-sponsored Christmas Hurdle, Binocular posted his first success of the season when winning a three-runner hurdle at Sandown 11 days ago.

However, that victory failed to impress regular rider Tony McCoy, who was questioning whether Binocular was replicating his form from last season.

Henderson added: "AP [Tony McCoy] has not been getting quite the same electric feel off the horse and, as we all know, the one thing this fellow can do is jump.

"All being well, we will identify the full nature of the problem and he will be back to win the Champion Hurdle next year".

Again from the Racing Post last Feb.

I still think he wasn't right at this time last year.
You can put it any way you want.
I did review the races in question and I did back him for the CH last year.

gutfeeling Joined: 18 Jul 06
Replies: 136 27 Jan 11 01:12   
would hope townend keeps the ride as imo is far better to have the man onboard who knows the horse inside out than the one who knows the course inside out,sure ruby will if not taking the ride give paul as much advice about the unique course as possible to aid him on his first festival ride....just hope if the fly doesnt win people dont crab him as he is still a young jock and one who i think could go right to the top over the next few years...real baptism of fire though and i dont envy him carrying the hopes of ireland on the biggest stage in nh racing on his first visit.


Regardless of whether Townend rides HF or not, it will not be his first festival ride.

Far from it in fact. He has ridden in every one of the Big 4 Championship races before.

correct yaboya

must have been having a attack of the stupids.....quite common for me it seems.

just a common on hurricane flys temperment. i have watched the horse wit a vested interest for a while now.yes it is true that he does carry the montjeu very hard to handle pre race up to last year. But i was in leop the last day n i think team mullins have him muted now he was the first horse into the parade ring n walked around like a real pro. it could be a blessing that he only heads across the water for the first time as a 7yo real pro now. hope townend keeps the ride he knows the horse well n like all rising star jockeys they win big races when others say thay havint the experience ta do it